The Plan and the Idea

Next chapter will be a normal one, but the one after will likely be a side chapter.

That's all, peace!

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/Drip…/

/Drip…/

/Drip…/

'Water slowly dripped from a stalactite, falling on the ground, splashing all around.'

'This seems to have been going on for ages, as the entire ground was full of water, reflecting the rocky ceiling of this dark cavern…'

/Crack…/

/Splash!/

'One of the walls of this cavern suddenly broke apart, and an object fell from within, crashing against the shallow water…'

/EXHALE/

'It wasn't an object, it was a creature.'

'This creature took its first breath...'

'The air that exited its nostrils was so strong some of the rock fragments around it were sent flying.'

"Nigh…"

'It touched the walls around it, trying to get up…

'Whenever it touched, ice would form...'

"?"

'The creature looked in surprise at its own hand, now glued to the wall because it had frozen with it.'

'So it took a moment to think... Noticing its environment.'

'This darkness, it was nostalgic to it.'

'It gave him protection, reason…'

'Life.'

/CRACK!/

'But it hated this feeling.'

'Because it made it remember things it would rather forget.'

'So frustrated, the creature pulled its hand from the wall, breaking the ice.'

'And it eventually remained there, motionless, thinking... Processing...'

'Understanding.'

...

/Silence…/

'Albeit there were no sounds in this cavern, the creature heard a symphony of sounds…. Words... Not words...'

'Those sounds were telling him similar things:'

*Rise*

*Outside*

*Break…*

*Pull them down…*

*Promise…*

'It was difficult to say if those words were actually real, or merely creations of its own confused mind.'

"..."

/Splash.../

'The creature looked up before taking a few steps forward.'

/Sha sha.../

'It was about to do what it was told… Rise...'

'And pull them down.'

/Shaaa../

"..."

'But it stopped.'

'The water moved all around due to its movements, but the creature decided for the first time to look down and not up...'

'Within the turbid and moving water, the creature saw its own reflection, and for the first time, its red eyes closed.'

'And when they opened, they were clear, as clear as the ice on the wall.'

"No…"

'The sounds suddenly stopped, and the whispers vanished.'

'But a thick sensation overtook it... Displeasure.'

'Or perhaps... Was it Pride?'

"..."

'The creature took a step back.'

"I don't want to."

'Looking at its reflection one last time, it now understood.'

'Perhaps not entirely, but it understood that it...'

'It "was"...'

'So the tall creature looked at the wall…'

/BAM!/

/Crack…/

/BAM!/

/Crack!/

'It punched repeatedly and with determination.'

'It felt pain, not much, but this feeling...'

'The creature didn't dislike it, because it made it think... It could feel...'

"HUFF!"

'As its punches carved the wall of its stones, digging deeper into the unknown, the creature felt a foreign emotion surge through its throat.'

'Exhilaration.'

'This was the moment the creature understood the meaning of its actions.'

'It was here to defy its own nature.'

"Unshackle..." It said in a low and deep tone

'These words... They came out on their own, but those words were not it.'

'Those words were said by someone else... It remembered, it had heard them many times in many different scenarios...'

'But they were all said by the same being.'

'The more it remembered, the stronger that feeling became...'

'It wanted to understand it, and most importantly, it wanted to know...'

'Who was it that kept appearing in its mind?'

/CRACK!/

/BAM BAM BAM BAM!/

'Under its consecutive strikes... Eventually, the wall gave in.'

'How brutal, to punch the very same wall that gave birth to it…'

'But perhaps, this was its own way of saying to its mother...'

'That it would live on its own from now on.'

/Shine…/

'Light entered this dark room, yet the creature remained enshrouded in black.'

'Its skin was thick, dark like the very darkness it was born within.'

/Crack…/

/Thud thud…/

'Pushing aside the broken wall with its fingers, the creature took its first steps into this bizarre light.'

'The unknow new world.'

'It felt familiar, yet at the same time not.'

/Exhale…/

/Step step step…/

'Barely had it taken its first breath of fresh air, the creature heard sounds of hurried steps, making their way to it.'

/SHHHHHHHH/

'More and more… A wave of sounds that fused together into one.'

'A tremor, a trumpet...'

'It signalized its doom.'

/ROAR!!/

'From its right, at the very end of the corridor, a mass of creatures rushed to it.'

'Once his allies, now his enemies.'

'If he didn't move, he would become their prey, like many others before him.'

/Thud…/

'So it took one step forward, getting into a position…'

'One arm in front of the other, one step in front of the other.'

'Bend the knees, face looking forward...'

"?"

'Then it realized something, it was missing "it".'

/Huff…/

'The creature became angered, how...'

'What words should it use to describe this feeling?'

'Ahh... They came to it on their own once more:'

"Embarrassing..."

'From its eyes, the monsters rushed at it were extremely slow, giving it plenty of time to think.'

'Eventually, it got an idea…'

/Grasp…/

'Its thick hand reached for its forehead, grasping its sole horn.'

'It was certainly a very unique one, reminiscent of the Sword Stags, albeit, it wasn't like a sword in shape.'

"ROAR!"

/CRACK!/

/RIP!/

'Screaming in agony and anger, the beast ripped its own horn apart, breaking it on its base.'

"ROAAAAAAR!"

/Slash!/

'As soon as it took its horn, it slashed it…'

/Thud thud thud…/

'And a rain of corpses followed it.'

"ROARRRRRRRRRRRR!"

/CRACK!/

/BAMMMM!/

'It's roar so strong it shook the very walls, ripping its outer layer apart like a house under the heart of a Hurricane...'

"ROARRRRRRRRR!"

'The beast roared in the dark tunnel, blood dripping from its forehead as more and more creatures rushed at it from deeper into this Hellhole.'

'So it grasped its horn...'

…

/At the same time, far far far away…/

/Inhale…/

…

'In a long stretch of flatland surrounded by tall, dead and gray, stony mountains, something opened its eyes.'

/Exhale…/

'Its breathing was slow, taking several minutes for a single cycle to be completed.'

/Blink…/

'Its eyes drowsily looked at the dark sky, or better put, sole eye.'

/Grrr…/

/Tremble…/

'It growled, making the mountains around it tremble.'

"..."

'The creature looked around itself, but the same scenario it had seen for a very long time showed itself.'

'Swords, Spears, Shields, Axes… All sorts of weapons, scattered in these plains.'

'Rusty and broken, no matter how great they once were, everything wears down with time.'

'Even Gods.'

'Some of them were on the ground, others embedded into its flesh, binding it down.'

'It was tired, it merely wanted to take off and... But it wasn't allowed.'

'And the reason was clear for it as well, and for that, there wasn't much it could do.'

"..."

'There was a complex emotion in this creature's eyes, one as complex as any Human, perhaps even more…'

/Step step…/

'While it thought, something tiny approached it.'

'An insect… A very annoying insect.'

'This tiny creature looked at it with hate and anger, but at the same time with pity and helplessness.'

"It's not yet time." The insect said as it shook its head

"Go back to…"

/Blink…/

'The mere blink of this creature sent the insect off balance.'

'It didn't seem that interested in whatever it had to say.'

'The insect was annoyed, it got up from the ground, cleaning itself of the dust before turning around, probably returning to its nest.'

'Such an annoying creature, everything would stay clear of it, yet this tiny thing remained, day after day, be it in storms, or in droughts.'

'It remained here, making sure to annoy it whenever it awoke from its slumber...'

'Such stubbornness…'

'Sometimes, it prayed... As if that would do anything...'

'But it did recognize its existence in the end/'

'After all…'

"..."

/Close.../

'The creature closed its eyes, resting its head on its hands once more.'

'The drowsiness finally caught up to it again, it was time to sleep.'

'It loved sleeping, but each time it closed its eyes, less and less time would pass…'

'The world wanted it to wake up, and it knew…'

'Time was running out, it would take off to the skies one day once more.'

'And then…'

"ZZZZZzzzz..."

/Inhale…/

'The creature breathed, and the air in the plains converged...'

'It greedily devoured everything...'

…

/Back at Orario…/

'Under the cover of the night, a man clad in black sat on top of a tall house's roof.'

"..."

'He was looking at the moon, waiting to strike.'

'He was ready, prepared…'

/Creak creak creak.../

'Albeit, the night wasn't silent...'

/Creak creak creak.../

"Ah~..."

"... #!"

'The man tried his best to remain collected, looking at the moon, as if it would help him in remaining calm through this ordeal.'

/Blink…/

'His left eye shone with light, but only for a mere moment, however, that was enough for him as he got up from his seat.'

'Without saying much more, his gaze fell onto a Manor that covered about half of this street block.'

/Vanish…/

'The man vanished.'

…

"Hm?"

"Is something wrong, Filvis?" A blond man asked as he grabbed a small bag of sweets from a person

"I..."

"Thank you for your patronage!"

"Ah, thank you as well." The man replied with a smile, making the lady clerk blush

"..."

"What were you saying Filvis?"

"It's nothing." She said as she left the shop

'But outside, she looked at the moon.'

...

'Inside the Manor, the man reappeared, but he did not move.'

'He was taking every possible precaution he could think of, and right now, he was doubling down and making sure there was no one on his way.'

'For this to work, he couldn't meet anyone, on his way in, and on his way out…'

'A perfect execution, there was no room for failure as being caught would most likely end in his death, albeit, deeming the personality of the people that lived here, there was a big chance he would come out alive.'

'However, his reputation might break down, and other problems would rise from their manipulation, which, for him, wasn't far from the worst scenario.'

'He had to be light, like the night's wind…'

As planned, there are only 7 people left in the Manor.

2 are sleeping, 3 are around the manor, and the last 2 are about to go to sleep as well.

Perfect.

/Blend…/

'The man took down his mask, revealing the very obvious...'

'It was Silver.'

/Hold!/

'He closed his mouth and nose, holding his breath...'

'And Silver slowly "melted" onto the ground, passing through the ground as if it was made of water…'

'Eventually, he arrived at the Cellar where many barrels of wine and alcohol were neatly stocked, some stacked on top of each other, others laying around like boxes.'

'There were hundreds, all labeled with all sorts of numbers and words.'

"..."

'But this wasn't his target.'

/Fly…/

'Not risking leaving footprints, Silver flew very close to the ground going all the way to the corner of the room.'

/Blend…/

'And like before, he passed through the wall as if it was made of water…'

…

"..."

I found it.

'Silver was now inside a large room, barely lit like the one before him.'

'The only source of light coming from a candle on top of a table in the corner of the room.'

'There was a bed in the middle of this place, and many shelves full of wines and barrels.'

'It was clear with a gaze they were of the highest quality, even more than those outside.'

'The names, the dates... They weren't normal in the slightest, and that was further reinforced by the fact they were singular, unique, with those that had more than one bottle available being very rare in this extensive collection.'

"..."

Where is it?

'His eyes darted around as he looked for his target, albeit he had researched a lot, he was still unsure of its exact appearance.'

'There was even the possibility there was none stored, made on demand by the God of Wines himself.'

'If that was the case, he would just leave, and this plan would likely be scraped, but better this than to be found.'

'His other plan was much riskier in all aspects, which was to collect samples from all wines here, and exchange them for similar-looking ones, however, that would be pretty obvious to notice.'

'The man that lived here may not realize if one wine were to be replaced, at least that soon...'

'But if all were to change tastes… How would the God of Wines not realize?'

'Still, let's say he doesn't, Silver would have to test one wine after the other on Ishtar until one worked…'

'And if that didn't sound dangerous to you then you clearly underestimated the situation he was currently in.'

"..."

'His eyes flashed, his lips sealed in order to not make any sounds…'

'He eventually locked onto the table next to the bed, it was very obvious after all…'

'Too obvious, it seemed to draw your attention to it.'

"..."

This place... Despite being so well hidden, with the possibility of someone coming here being close to 0...

This guy made sure to make it as convoluted as possible.

'Still, it was his sole clue so far.'

'The table had several notes on top of it, including a closed bottle of wine, half of its contents missing.'

'Next to the wine was a cristal glass, wine residue could be seen inside.'

'Apart from that, a few scattered pieces of clothes, a pen, and an ink pot.'

'Not really much…'

"..."

Time's running out.

They could be back anytime, and considering she is an Elf Magic Swordsman…

Even if I were to teleport away, she would notice it.

And then… Things wouldn't be good.

The worst thing I can do is make an already vigilant man aware that there is someone that knows…

'Silver's right hand transformed, and a red laser passed through all of the papers.'

'Nothing changed on the table, but that wasn't the case for his body...'

'Next second, words started to appear on his left hand.'

"..."

Let's see.

The first one is...

A recipe for winemaking… That's not it.

Numbers… These are… They must be the monthly expenditure of the Dionysus Familia's many shenanigans... Useless.

Next… A poem?... Oh… It's for a girl.

Dionysus is known for giving lip service to pretty girls that show some sort of interest in him, albeit he is much more self-contained than most boys.

He isn't the kind of guy to go after girls, although that normally doesn't work for normal guys, he is just so overwhelmingly attractive to girls that they end up flocking to him like flies anyway.

Be it ugly or pretty. To a point it's strange he isn't a God of beauty.

But I guess you don't need to have a domain in beauty to be considered as such by others...

So it seems there is a girl seeing him… Poor lady.

Having a relationship with a God is already a bit painful for both sides, the higher their emotions, the higher the disappointment after a few years pass.

Much less this guy… Be it God or man, no one deserves this... Urg…

Perhaps some male Gods get girls by promising them an eternity in heaven, but that couldn't be more bull...

At least for 90% of them, I don't refuse the idea of there being some genuine Gods that would do so, after all, there are more Virgin Male Gods than Female ones.

I give them my respect, to resist millennia amidst those thirsty Goddesses...

Anyway, I'm getting off-topic.

...

'Silver went through all of the papers, but he found nothing.'

'He moved around the room as well, and he even left the basement for a moment, going through Dionysus' study…'

'Yet he found nothing at all.'

"..."

Damn.

This can't be true, something is severely wrong.

I checked everything, even the walls, and the ground...

How can he have no notes? Does he keep everything memorized from the get-go?

That could be the case, still, what about things such as contracts and papers that need to exist in order to make a deal/agreement valid?

Did he… Store it somewhere else?

There were no residues in the campfires, so he didn't burn it… And I can't go so far as to analyze the micro residual composition of the objects in this room...

Even if I could, it would take an eternity and it would result in nothing conclusive.

Pretty much, my options are limited due to my tolls and time...

'He raised his left hand, and 2 arrows appeared on his back palm.'

6 and half minutes since I arrived, by now, the 2 that were going to sleep had already hit the bed.

Although my time limit was an hour, I would like to leave within 20 minutes.

And I can't forget, I need to clean up after myself before I leave…

Remove any of my traces, such as any possible fingerprint, even my smell.

"..."

However, I had no progress whatsoever…

I did find things such as the Statuses of his children, I've kept copies of them for later.

But that is the problem, there was nothing else.

He is much more meticulous than I thought.

'Silver touched his head in frustration.'

And following him isn't an option, he's always followed by that girl, and no matter what, I can't bring myself to trust her.

Since in the end, she's just…

"Hum?..."

'Silver finally had an idea, one that somehow slipped his mind this entire time.'

'He touched his forehead as a light bulb ignited on top of his head.'

That's it, why didn't I think of this?

I was so focused on erasing my tracks that I forgot I could go the other way around...

Albeit he is very careful, I doubt he has thought of this…

/Flash!/

'Silver's hands glowed, and the room went completely dark.'

'Prior to his arrival, there was a single candle burning on the side, he didn't extinguish it, he merely covered it up with his own Plasmids.'

'Considering how careful the man in question was if he were to extinguish the candle, there was a chance he would notice it based on the quantity of wax on the bottom by the time he came back.'

'Now that the room was dark, he could try doing it…'

/Fwoosh…/

"!"

'Upon his eyes, the "truth" was revealed…'

/Smirk…/

'And he smiled.'

This is it.

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Notes